Meet Brindle

Hawkins Creek is one of the many hamlets I suppose you would call them which are out of Ingham.  They are pretty much an accumulation of houses or small acreages which are given a name which connects it to the area, in this case a creek called Hawkins Creek.  People live in houses on cane farms out here but have no affiliation to the farm itself.  When we were staying in North Eton out of Mackay, we lived in a house on a cane farm but had nothing to do with the cane farming.  As farms are bought, sold and merged, there can be more than one house on a property so the landowners rent the houses for extra income.  A bit less than 2 months ago, we were invited to new friends for dinner at their house on a cane farm at Hawkins Creek.  Our friends keep the feral pigs out of the farmers' cane in exchange for less rent which works well for all involved.  Of course to keep feral pigs in check, one needs pig dogs which are very common in Ingham.  Most farmers have these dogs due to the ongoing trouble with pigs ruining their sugar cane crops.  Our friends had three dogs, one of which was a full blood kelpie which they had only recently acquired and who was expecting pups.  You know where this is going don't you all. 
The day after we had visited for dinner, the pups were born, 3 girls and 4 boys.  Of course it never entered my head about the potential to get one of these puppies but Steve had obviously been thinking about it for a while.  Our friends had invited us to come over and see the pups on a couple of occasions to which I replied how 'dangerous' that might be with the girls and cute puppies, but only in jest.  Well last weekend, Steve drummed up enough nerves to broach the subject with me and of course, I reacted in my usual way of complete refusal and denial.  Don't get me wrong, I do love all animals, as is demonstrated by our unusual menagerie which we are dragging all over Australia with us, but I wouldn't say I am a 'dog' person.  Steve, on the other hand, grew up with dogs and so has a bit more of a repore with them.  Anyway, after my rantings about who's gonna look after it, feed it, clean up after it, walk it, as well as all the extra $$$$$ to look after it, Steve made it clear that he wanted to have the dog as a companion at work either in the truck or the helicopter.  This may have calmed me down a bit as I didn't want the extra responsibility of a dog that especially needed lots of exercise.  I could see the merit in having a particularly active dog such as a kelpie in a work situation because the dog would get constant stimulation from new environments and plenty of exercise going to cane farms.  After a couple of days of walking around being pig headed myself, we went out to our friends to have a look at the puppies which were 6 weeks old by this stage.
Yes, the puppies were all adorable as one would expect of a kelpie mother but the father's parentage was a little more questionable because our friends didn't realise she was expecting pups when they got her.  Anyway, there were 2 red kelpie coloured ones, 4 black kelpie coloured ones and one light tan dingo looking one.  Steve had wanted a female with the red coloured coat so there was only one choice but what would her personality be like.  We stood around and watched the personality mix to see what would happen.  Most of them were boisterous and bitey as puppies are but the red female was quieter, reserved and hung back while the others made mischief.   I made the mistake of wearing a long skirt and my rubber crocs which the puppies took a particular liking to and at one stage, I had several of them hanging off my skirt and chewing on my crocs.  Fortunately, Steve's choice was not one of them and the more we watched, the more Steve was happy with the personality of the little red girl.  Our friends offered that we could take her then and there because she was weaned but at only 6 weeks old, I was apprehensive and so we left without her.  I think it was more about me having to get used to the idea than anything else.
Well for the next 4 days, Steve talked of nothing else but the puppy.  He googled everything 'kelpie' to find out about training, desexing, food etc etc which was driving me insane.  I did suggest that he ask his employers first to see if they would allow him to have a dog at work to which he agreed.   I wasn't sure but I thought it might be alright with them because one of the owners has a dog he brings to work with him.  Anyway after waiting several days for the 'right' moment to ask, he broached the subject and got approval.  Of course, Heather whose sons run the business said why would we want to complicate our lives with a dog (my feelings exactly) but was ok with the idea.  Steve went and picked up a food bowl, collar and lead etc and some food but by Wednesday, he was getting jittery and wanted to pick up the puppy.  I couldn't stand it anymore so told him to just organise it.  By Thursday night, we were heading out to Hawkins Creek again to pick her up.
We brought her home and set up a sleeping nest in one of the cat boxes in the entrance hall upstairs.  Steve threw in his work shirt from that day which had puppy smells all over it and I suggested a stuffed toy so she doesn't feel lonely.  Of course the girls were just so overwhelmed that there were tears on the way home because they couldn't both hold the puppy at the same time.  We went to bed that night expecting wimpering and crying all night but we didn't hear a peep out of her.  Steve got up in the middle of the night and took her outside for a toilet stop and she did her thing without any prompting.  When he got up again at 4am to go to work, he organised her and took her with him.  Of course when the girls got up, they asked where the puppy was and I said she had gone to work with daddy because that's how it will be from now on.  That night there was lots of playing when Steve got home from work but the girls soon went inside.  I think their excitement will be shortlived once puppy has been with us for a while.
As far as names go, Steve couldn't come up with anything he liked.  The overwhelming responsibility of giving a puppy a name that she will have for her life and especially one that is fitting for a work dog was too much to bear.  After several days with us, she still didn't have an official name.  Erin suggested Ella or Elly.  Steve thought of Molly and I thought of Brindle, due to the brindle colouring on all her legs (obviously from dad).  In the end, I just started calling her Brindle and no-one seemed to waver from that so that became her name.  She still doesn't respond to it yet so if anyone comes up with something spectacular in the near future, it may change.
We took her to Townsville over the weekend because she was too small to leave at home alone.  Walking through Bunnings with a puppy is like walking anywhere with a newborn baby.  Everyone was doing a 'double take' as Steve walked with her up and down the aisles.  Forget about the wife and two beautiful daughters following behind with the trolley full of stuff!  Actually Brindle was the perfect pickup line come to think of it.  Several stops and pats later and we finally got out of there.  We had to go to the pet shop to pick up crickets and she was allowed in there without us feeling nervous about getting kicked out of the store.  While in the car, she slept under my legs on the floor on a blanket.  Whenever we stopped, we had to make sure it was near a garden or at least some lawn so she could have a wee stop.
The cats are finding the dog intruder quite disruptive.  Karki, who is naturally nervous anyway, hid under the dining chair for the first night while Pirie stalked the small brown thing with purpose and curiosity.  Watching them interract is quite funny actually.  A hiss from Pirie followed by the raised paw ready to strike while Brindle looks on with cautious interest.  Karki just cowers around from one spot to another avoiding confrontation.   Sometimes if Pirie is wandering across the lawn outside, Brindle will approach with a view to chase and if Pirie runs, the chase is on but the cats always go to the high ground on the stairs which Brindle can't negotiate yet.  It's been four days now since we picked up Brindle and the cats are slowly getting back some of the territory that they thought they'd lost.  We are hoping that they get used to her quickly while she is small because once she starts growing, they might become intimidated by her.  The cats will continue to be top dogs in the household because they have the run of the place while Brindle will have to be restricted and learn her place as an outside dog or at least an entrance way dog only.
She has a small assortment of toys including a giraffe on a rope (unlike soap on a rope) which is her tug o war toy and another giraffe called Geoffrey which was given to Becca by a lady in the caravan park in Mapleton.  I thought he would be a good companion after losing all her brothers and sisters.  One morning while cleaning up in the entrance way, I discovered one of Geoffrey's eyes chewed up under a shoe.  Later that morning, I mentioned to Steve that Geoffrey had lost an eye overnight and he stopped mid sentence thinking that I was talking about my brother in law who is also called Jeffrey.  I had to clarify that comment quickly.  Of course we keep all our shoes in a box in the entrance hall and my slippers are usually parked next to the box.  Steve has found one of my slippers in Brindle's box thankfully unchewed but they'd only just been washed so had a new layer of dog slobber on them.  Great!!  I have two strips of rubber tied to the bathroom door for my physio band exercises and a small chunk has been ripped out of them.
 
This morning, I woke up to a small puddle in the living area because Steve had slept through and not gotten up in the middle of the night for Brindle's wee break. He had tried to clean it up when he woke at 4am but had missed a spot which was obvious in the daylight. I spent the morning mopping the living area amid repeated apologies from Steve for missing the little indescretion. Late this afternoon Brindle had her first round of vaccinations and Steve received a puppy pack with all sorts of goodies inside for Brindle. We are finding that she is becoming more confident as she becomes familiar with her new family and new surroundings. This means that the meek and mild little dog that Steve picked last week is starting to come out of her shell. She is naturally intelligent and knows when she's being growled at but is pushing the boundaries a bit. She has a cute little bark as Steve discovered when he came up the stairs one early morning and she didn't recognise him in the dark. It's only been 4 days and already the fun is beginning so we will see how she goes being raised in the Arseoels household and how we go living with a dog.